Safety-coupling for railroad-cars



E. H- ANDERSON.

Car Coupling Patented Feb. 3. @857.

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AM. PHOTO-THO. C0: N.Y. (USBDRNE'S PROCESS) UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD H. ANDERSON, OF MILFORD, DELAWARE.

SAFETY-COUPLING FOR RAILROAD-CARS.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 16,520, dated February 3, 1857.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD H. ANDER- SON, of Milford, in the county of Kent and State of Delaware, have invented an Improvement in Car-Couplings, and that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the principle or character which distinguishes it from all other things before known and of the usual manner of making, modifying, and using the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, of which Figure l, is a perspective view of the coupling Fig. 2, a horizontal section.

A represents the cross-beam of the rear end of the front car to which is attached a cast-iron shoe B, provided on both sides with projections r r, a bolt 7) passes through the shoe B in such a manner that it can be moved to and fro in the direction of the motion of the car by means of a lever m attached to the said bolt and can be kept stationary by inserting the pin 9, which passes through a hole of the shoe B and the body of the bolt 5. The end of the bolt Z) is rounded off so as to correspond to the socket of the bolt 0, which is attached to the front beam of the rear car. Said bolt 0 is fastened to said front beam by means of another cast iron shoe D into which it can slide to and fro. The end of the bolt 0 is provided with two projections m m, into which are inserted the ends of the arms (Z (Z. To the projections m m of the shoe piece D are two spring plates f f fastened by means of screw bolts. These spring plates are provided at their ends with catches e e and are drawn toward each other by the ends 79 p of the arms (Z (Z passing through said spring plates at or near their center. The tension of these springs can be regulated by tightening or unscrewing the screw nuts at p p.

The manner of operating this car coupling is as follows: The pin 9 being inserted in the shoe B keeps the bolt b stationary and the front car running backward toward the rear car, the round end of the bolt Z) will run into the socket of the bolt 0, will drive said bolt backward and the catches e 6 will carry with them the arms (Z (Z which will thus draw the springs inward. The catches a (Z now strike against the oblique of the shoe B, slide up and fall in behind the projections r r, and are kept there tightly by means of the arms (Z (Z and thus the operation is performed.

To uncouple the cars the pin 9 is removed and the bolt 1) is pushed forward by working the lever m, then the bolt 0 will also move forward by the outward tension of the springs connected with said bolt by the arms (Z (Z, and the cars are uncoupled. This arrangement also permits the cars to uncouple automatically in case of an accident, such as any of the cars running off the track. If one of the cars runs off the track, it assumes an oblique position toward the other, and thus the bolt 6 is jerked out off the socket of bolt 0, and the cars are uncoupled in the manner as above described, the obliquity of the bearing parts being adapted to keep them in place for any contemplated motion on the track.

I do not claim spring catches for cou plings, nor do I claim the principle of self separation when the cars get off the track, but

I claim The special mode herein above set forth of effecting the self coupling and self uncoupling, by the combined action of the fol lowing parts, to wit, catches a, (Z, bolt, Z), with its rounded end, bolt 0 with is concave end, jointed arms (Z, (Z, and spring catches or jaws 6,6; all constructed and operating as above set forth.

EDWARD H. ANDERSON. \Vitnesses:

SAMUEL B. HOPKINS, JAS. H. ANDERSON. 

